The overarching goals of the Research Training and Education Core (RTEC) is to accelerate the professional development of investigators committed to achieving health equity by eliminating health disparities and to increase the number of well-qualified researchers from health disparity populations. The need for highly qualified researchers in health disparity research in Maryland is increasing as state demographics shift to a minority-majority state during the next 10-15 years. Unless powerful new approaches to disease prevention and treatment are adopted in disciplines where health disparities exist, the persistence of health inequities among Blacks, Hispanics, and other racial and ethnic populations will accelerate costs associated with healthcare and potentially increase human suffering. We will utilize a Public Health Critical Race praxis (PHCR) approach to train predoctoral students, postdoctoral trainees, junior faculty and established faculty who wish to conduct research on racial and ethnic disparities in disease and adverse health conditions. PHCR puts in practice comprehensive inten/enfions to address race, ethnicity, racism, and structural inequalities and utilizes advanced evaluation methods to foster our ability to eliminate racial and ethnic health disparities. We posit that a PHCR-based approach to research training and career development will produce self-reflective, community-engaged, action-oriented researchers who focus explicit attention to the impact of race and racism on the health and well being of vulnerable populations. Our training program will also advance Fourth Generation Research, the framework of our Center of Excellence, which focuses on action to make a difference in health outcomes.